Gift wrap dispensing system

ABSTRACT

A gift wrap dispensing system includes a roll of gift wrapping that is retained within an enclosable carton. The roll of gift wrapping is in the range of approximately 10-16 inches in length and includes a rigid cardboard tube on which a supply of wrapping paper is wound. The wrapping paper includes a decorative film, such as a holographic or metallized film, that is bonded onto a coated paper substrate using a layer of bonding material. The carton is preferably constructed from a unitary cardboard blank and includes a bottom panel, a front panel, a rear panel and a pair of side panels which together define a longitudinal cavity which is sized and shaped to receive the roll of gift wrapping. The carton additionally includes a lid that is pivotally coupled to the rear panel and that is designed to be pivoted between an open position and a closed position. In order to dispense a supply of wrapping paper, the lid of the carton is pivoted at least partially open. A user-defined section of the wrapping paper is extracted from the carton and is severed from the remainder of the roll of gift wrapping using an externally-accessible serrated cutting edge that is mounted on the carton. With the section of wrapping paper dispensed, the lid is pivoted closed to protect the remainder of the roll of gift wrapping pending further use.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to gift wrapping and more particularly to a novel system for dispensing gift wrapping.

Gift wrapping (also commonly referred to in the art as gift wrap or wrapping paper) is well known in the art and is commonly used to cover presents for decorative purposes. Gift wrapping is most commonly used to wrap birthday and/or holiday gifts which are relatively compact in size and which are non-perishable in nature.

Gift wrapping is typically manufactured in the form of an enlarged, rectangular, multi-layered sheet of highly decorative material that is customarily wound onto a disposable, hollow, cylindrical length of heavy paper or cardboard tubing. Commonly, rolls of gift wrapping are approximately thirty-six inches in length but may vary slightly in length to accommodate a variety of differently sized and shaped gifts.

Gift wrapping is traditionally packaged for sale in its rolled form, with a thin transparent plastic material often encasing the product for protective purposes. When a length of wrapping paper is required for use, the user unrolls a section of the gift wrap which is slightly greater in size than the surface area of the item to be wrapped. The defined area of gift wrapping is then severed from the remainder of the roll using a conventional household cutting instrument, such as a pair of scissors. The user-defined section of gift wrapping is then wrapped around the item and is secured in place using tape or another similar adhesive product. With the present successfully wrapped, the user then often returns the remaining roll of wrapping paper to a shelf or a closet for storage until further use is required.

As can be appreciated, it has been found that the conventional means for packaging and storing gift wrapping (i.e., by winding it around a length of rigid tubing) introduces a few notable drawbacks.

As a first drawback, it has been found that gift wrapping which is wound onto a length of rigid tubing lacks protection from many potentially harmful conditions, such as inadvertent contact, moisture and/or dust, thereby rendering the gift wrapping highly susceptible to significant damage, such as tearing, wrinkling and/or discoloration. It is for this reason that multiple tubes of gift wrapping are often stored within an enlarged, multi-pieced protective container which is typically constructed out of a rigid plastic. However, it is to be understood that such a container is typically constructed to be of a considerable size, thereby rendering it impossible of being stored within the most readily available household storage areas, such as cabinet drawers, shelves and closets, which is highly undesirable.

As a second drawback, it has been found that gift wrapping is typically packaged as rolls which are relatively large in size (approximately thirty-six inches in length), thereby rendering it somewhat difficult to handle during its use. Furthermore, as noted above, a relatively large roll of gift wrapping is considerably difficult to store in the more conventional household storage areas, such as cabinet drawers, shelves and closets, which is highly undesirable.

As a third drawback, it has been found that the conventional means for packaging gift wrapping affords a user with no readily available instrument for separating a section of the gift wrapping from the remainder of the roll. Rather, a separate cutting instrument, such as a pair of scissors, is typically required to separate a section of the gift wrapping from the remainder of the roll, thereby rendering the entire gift wrapping process more complicated in nature, which is highly undesirable.

In order to facilitate the handling, dispensing and storage of gift wrapping, dispensing systems are commonly used in commercial settings (e.g., at gift wrapping stations located in the retail environment). These dispensing systems typically include a base, or other similar support structure, which is designed to be mounted onto an enlarged working surface (e.g., a table). Furthermore, a wheel on which the wrapping paper is secured is rotatably mounted on the base. In this manner, the application of a slight withdrawal force on the free edge of the wrapping paper causes the wheel to rotate, thereby facilitating in the process of extracting a supply of the wrapping paper for use. An example of a commercial wrapping paper dispensing system is disclosed in U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2004/0144882 to D. Small et al., which is incorporated herein by reference.

Although well known in the art, commercial gift wrap dispensing systems of the type described above suffer from a couple notable drawbacks.

As a first drawback, commercial gift wrap dispensing systems of the type described above are traditionally designed to support rolls of gift wrapping which are at least 36 inches in length. As a result, commercial gift wrap dispensing systems are similarly rather considerable in size. Due to the substantial working and storage space required, such a system is typically limited to commercial applications and is not used in the more common residential (i.e., personal) applications, which is highly undesirable.

As a second drawback, commercial gift wrap dispensing systems of the type described above are not designed to protect the gift wrapping when stored away for future use. In fact, when not in use, the gift wrapping remains exposed to potentially harmful conditions which can significantly damage the wrapping paper, which is highly undesirable.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved system for dispensing gift wrap.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a system of the type as described above which protects the gift wrap from potentially harmful conditions when stored away pending further use.

It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a system as described above which is relatively compact in size, thereby facilitating its storage and handling.

It is yet still another object of the present invention to provide a system as described above which has a limited number of parts, which is inexpensive to manufacture and which is easy to use.

Therefore, according to one feature of the present invention, there is provided a gift wrap dispensing system comprising, (a) a roll of gift wrapping comprising, (i) a rigid tube, and (ii) a sheet of composite wrapping paper wound onto the rigid tube, and (b) a carton sized and shaped to at least substantially enclose the roll of gift wrapping.

According to another feature of the present invention, there is provided a method method for dispensing gift wrap, said method comprising the steps of (a) providing a gift wrap dispensing system which comprises, (i) a roll of gift wrapping which includes a rigid tube and a sheet of composite wrapping paper wound onto the rigid tube, and (ii) a carton sized and shaped to at least substantially enclose the roll of gift wrapping, the carton comprising a bottom panel, a front panel, a rear panel and a pair of side panels which together define a longitudinal cavity which is sized and shaped to receive the roll of gift wrapping, the carton further comprising a lid that is pivotally coupled to the rear panel and that is designed to be pivoted between an open position and a closed position, (b) pivoting the lid of the carton at least partially open, (c) extracting a user-defined section of the composite wrapping paper from the carton, and (d) severing the user-defined section of the composite wrapping paper from the remainder of the roll of gift wrapping.

Various other features and advantages will appear from the description to follow. In the description, reference is made to the accompanying drawings which form a part thereof, and in which is shown by way of illustration, an embodiment for practicing the invention. The embodiment will be described in sufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art to practice the invention, and it is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized and that structural changes may be made without departing from the scope of the invention. The following detailed description is therefore, not to be taken in a limiting sense, and the scope of the present invention is best defined by the appended claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the drawings wherein like reference numerals represent like parts:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a gift wrap dispensing system constructed according to the teachings of the present invention, the gift wrap dispensing system being shown with the lid of the carton disposed partially open, the gift wrap dispensing system also being shown with a supply of wrapping paper extracted from the carton;

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view, broken away in part, of the gift wrap dispensing system shown in FIG. 1, the gift wrap dispensing system being shown with the lid of the carton disposed partially open;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the gift wrap dispensing system shown in FIG. 1, the gift wrap dispensing system being shown the lid pivoted closed and with a portion of the extracted wrapping paper having been severed through contact against the cutting edge provided on the carton, and

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the gift wrap dispensing system shown in FIG. 1, the gift wrap dispensing system being shown with the lid pivoted closed such that the entire roll of gift wrapping is retained within the carton.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Referring now to FIGS. 1 and 2, there are shown perspective and exploded perspective views, respectively, of a novel system for dispensing gift wrap, the system being constructed according to the teachings of the present invention and identified generally by reference numeral 11.

Gift wrap dispensing system 11 comprises a roll of gift wrapping 13 that is retained within an enclosable carton 15.

As seen most clearly in FIG. 2, roll of gift wrapping 13 comprises a generally rectangular sheet of wrapping paper 17 that is wound onto a disposable tube 19. Tube 19 is preferably provided in the form of a hollow, cylindrical length of heavy paper or cardboard tubing which is suitably rigid so as to retain wrapping paper 17 in its rolled configuration.

It should be noted that the overall length L of roll of gift wrapping 13 is preferably in the range of approximately 10 inches to approximately 16 inches, which is considerably shorter in length than most conventional rolls of gift wrapping (which are traditionally approximately 36 inches in length). Due to its relatively short length, roll of gift wrapping 13 can be easily stored away in a wide variety of highly accessible, common household storage areas, such as drawers and/or shelves, and therefore serves as a novel feature of the present invention.

Wrapping paper 17 is represented herein as being in the form of a composite (i.e., multi-layered) gift wrap which includes a decorative film 21 bonded onto at least one surface of a paper substrate 23 using a layer of bonding material 25, such as any conventional pressure-sensitive or heat-sensitive adhesive.

Decorative film 21 represents any conventional high quality decorative film that is commonly found in composite wrapping paper. Examples of conventional films that may be used as decorative film 21 include, inter alia, holographic films, iridescent films, foil films and/or metallized films (e.g., prepolymer or aluminum films). Furthermore, it should be noted that decorative film 21 may be provided with surface printing (i.e., decorative lettering and/or designs) in order to customize wrapping paper 17 for a particular usage (i.e., for a particular holiday or event).

Due to the porous nature of paper products, paper substrate 23 is preferably coated on both sides with a conventional filler, such as Kaolin (which is also referred to in the art as China Clay), in order to provide paper substrate 23 with a high gloss (i.e., shiny), bright and hard finish. However, it should be noted that paper substrate 23 is not limited to the coated variety. Rather, it is to be understood that paper substrate 23 could be of the uncoated variety (e.g., recyclable paper) without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

Wrapping paper 17 is not limited to the particular construction as described herein. Rather, it is to be understood that wrapping paper 17 represents any composite gift wrap which is well known in the art. For example, it is to be understood that wrapping paper 17 could alternatively be formed by depositing one or more ink layers directly onto a surface of paper substrate 23. Additional examples of composite gift wrappings which may be used in place of wrapping paper 17 are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,440,254 to Rich et al., and in U.S. Pat. No. 6,218,004 to D. Shaw et al., both of said patents being incorporated herein by reference.

Carton 15 is preferably constructed from a unitary cardboard blank which is shaped into its rectangular box-type configuration (as shown in FIGS. 1-4) through a multi-stepped folding process. As will be described in detail below, the particular design of carton 15 allows for roll of gift wrapping 13 to be retained entirely therewithin for protective purposes, which is highly desirable.

Specifically, carton 15 comprises a bottom panel 27, a front panel 29, a rear panel 31 and a pair of side panels 33 and 35 which together define a longitudinal cavity 37 which is sized and shaped to loosely receive roll of gift wrapping 13. Carton 15 additionally includes a lid 39 that is pivotally coupled to rear panel 31 by a fold line 41, lid 39 comprising a top panel 43, a front panel 45 and a pair of side panels 47 and 49.

Lid 39 is designed to be pivoted between a closed position and an open position. With lid 39 disposed in its closed position (as shown in FIG. 4), panels 45, 47 and 49 overlap panels 29, 33 and 35, respectively, in such a manner so that longitudinal cavity 37 is completely enclosed by carton 15. With lid 39 disposed in its open position (lid 39 being shown partially open in FIG. 1), exterior access to longitudinal cavity 37 is thereby provided.

A serrated, metallic cutting edge 51 is preferably coupled to carton 15 at the junction of bottom panel 27 and front panel 29. As will be described below, cutting edge 51 serves as a readily available means for separating a length of wrapping paper 17 from the remainder of roll 13.

It should be noted that carton 15 is not limited to the particular construction as described herein. Rather, it is to be understood that carton 15 could be replaced with any similarly constructed carton that, in turn, could be used to substantially enclose roll of gift wrapping 13. For example, carton 15 could be replaced with any conventional carton which is commonly used to dispense materials for wrapping perishable food items, such as aluminum foil, plastic wrap or wax paper. Examples of some possible cartons which may be used in place of carton 15 include U.S. Pat. No. 6,612,473 to S. K. Newby et al., and U.S. Pat. No. 6,405,913 to P. L. Passamoni, both of said references being incorporated herein by reference.

In use, system 11 may be used to dispense a supply of wrapping paper for gift wrapping purposes. Specifically, when a supply of wrapping paper 17 is desired, the user is required to pivot lid 39 at least partially open, as seen in FIG. 1. The user then grasps the free end of wrapping paper 17 and draws it outward away from carton 15, as represented by arrow A in FIG. 1. It should be noted that carton 15 is sized and shaped such that, upon the application of the withdrawal force on the free end of wrapping paper 17, roll of gift wrapping 13 is rotates freely within cavity 37.

When an adequate sized sheet of wrapping paper 17 has been extracted from carton 15, the user draws the extracted wrapping paper against cutting edge 51 (preferably with lid 39 closed so as to retain roll 13 fixed in place). Upon the application of a suitable downward and inward force, as represented by arrow B in FIG. 3, the user-defined section of wrapping paper 17-1 is severed from the remainder of wrapping paper 17-2. The dispensed section of wrapping paper 17-1 is then wrapped around the desired item and is held in place using an adhesive (e.g., transparent tape).

Upon completion of the dispensing process, the remainder of roll 13 is disposed entirely within cavity 37. If no further supply of wrapping paper 17 is required at that time, the user can pivot lid 39 closed, as shown in FIG. 4. As can be appreciated, with lid 39 pivoted closed, roll of gift wrapping 13 is retained entirely within carton 15 and is therefore protected from any potentially harmful conditions, which is a principal feature of the present invention. Furthermore, due to its compact construction, system 11 may be stored within a relative small storage area, such as a drawer, until further use is required.

The embodiment shown in the present invention is intended to be merely exemplary and those skilled in the art shall be able to make numerous variations and modifications to it without departing from the spirit of the present invention. All such variations and modifications are intended to be within the scope of the present invention as defined in the appended claims. 

1. A gift wrap dispensing system comprising, (a) a roll of gift wrapping comprising, (i) a rigid tube, and (ii) a sheet of composite wrapping paper wound onto the rigid tube, and (b) a carton sized and shaped to at least substantially enclose the roll of gift wrapping.
 2. The gift wrap dispensing system as claimed in claim 1 wherein the composite wrapping paper comprises, (a) a paper substrate, and (b) a decorative film bonded to the paper substrate.
 3. The gift wrap dispensing system as claimed in claim 2 wherein the decorative film is selected from the group consisting of: holographic films, iridescent films, foil films and metallized films.
 4. The gift wrap dispensing system as claimed in claim 2 wherein the decorative film is secured to the paper substrate using an adhesive bonding material.
 5. The gift wrap dispensing system as claimed in claim 2 wherein said paper substrate is a coated paper substrate.
 6. The gift wrap dispensing system as claimed in claim 1 wherein the length of the roll of gift wrapping is in the range of approximately 10 inches to approximately 16 inches.
 7. The gift wrap dispensing system as claimed in claim 1 wherein the carton comprises a bottom panel, a front panel, a rear panel and a pair of side panels which together define a longitudinal cavity which is sized and shaped to receive the roll of gift wrapping.
 8. The gift wrap dispensing system as claimed in claim 7 wherein the carton additionally comprises a lid that is pivotally coupled to the rear panel.
 9. The gift wrap dispensing system as claimed in claim 8 wherein the lid is designed to be pivoted between an open position and a closed position.
 10. The gift wrap dispensing system as claimed in claim 9 wherein, with the lid dispose din its closed position, the carton serves to completely enclose the roll of gift wrapping.
 11. The gift wrap dispensing system as claimed in claim 10 further comprising a cutting edge coupled to the carton.
 12. The gift wrap dispensing system as claimed in claim 11 wherein the carton is constructed from a unitary cardboard blank.
 13. A method for dispensing gift wrap, said method comprising the steps of: (a) providing a gift wrap dispensing system which comprises, (i) a roll of gift wrapping which includes a rigid tube and a sheet of composite wrapping paper wound onto the rigid tube, and (ii) a carton sized and shaped to at least substantially enclose the roll of gift wrapping, the carton comprising a bottom panel, a front panel, a rear panel and a pair of side panels which together define a longitudinal cavity which is sized and shaped to receive the roll of gift wrapping, the carton further comprising a lid that is pivotally coupled to the rear panel and that is designed to be pivoted between an open position and a closed position, (b) pivoting the lid of the carton at least partially open, (c) extracting a user-defined section of the composite wrapping paper from the carton, and (d) severing the user-defined section of the composite wrapping paper from the remainder of the roll of gift wrapping.
 14. The method as claimed in claim 13 further comprising the step of, after said severing step, pivoting the lid of the carton to its closed position.
 15. The method as claimed in claim 14 wherein, with the lid of the carton disposed in its closed position, the roll of gift wrapping is enclosed entirely within the carton.
 16. The method as claimed in claim 13 wherein said severing step is accomplished using a cutting edge that is coupled to the carton. 